The year is 1988. Hip-hop is in its golden era. E.U. has the whole country doing “Da Butt,” as suggested in the group’s chart-topping hit from the soundtrack of Spike Lee’s film “School Daze.” On the West Coast, N.W.A. released “Straight Outta Compton,” and Public Enemy’s “Don’t Believe the Hype” is blaring out of boomboxes on street corners coast to coast.
This is the backdrop of “How We Got On,” a play with music having its world premiere at Hyde Park’s Definition Theatre. Directed by artistic director Tyrone Phillips, the drama follows teens Hank, Julian and Luann as they’re caught in the tidal wave of hip-hop by way of the classic television show “Yo! MTV Raps.” Influenced by the show’s aesthetic of flashy jewels, fancy cars and fresh rhymes, these teens decide they will become the next rap superstars. But here’s the catch: These kids are from the suburbs. A world away from the urban areas where hip-hop is booming.
The script by veteran playwright Idris Goodwin has good bones. Hip-hop pairs well with a coming-of-age story. The genre, according to legend, was born at a house party in the Bronx in the early 1970s. In “How We Got On,” hip-hop itself was in its teenage years, just like the characters we meet. The play has a lot to say about formative years — how kids find themselves, the influence of parents, and, in the case of Black and Latino kids in predominantly white suburbs in the late ’80s, cultural isolation.
Goodwin has a deft hand in displaying these themes, yet as a whole the production still needs a little work, and perhaps additional actors. Selector, played by Maya Vinice Prentiss, pulls quadruple duties as narrator/DJ, and the father of all three teens. The dynamic of each dad and the different pressures they put on their children is important in this play. Having another actor would have gone a long way to draw on those relationships and provide a deeper connection. Having Selector jump in and out of those roles made the relationships feel surface level and almost like an afterthought, which takes away from the drama.
Luann, portrayed excellently by Anuoluwa T Awolola, was vastly underwritten, as was her father. She enters the action midway through the production and serves as a catalyst for Hank and Julian to complete their respective arcs. Her character is interesting and deserves a deeper journey of her own. In one scene, atop a water tower overlooking the suburb, Luann teaches Hank to freestyle by interpreting his observations. It leads to wondering what she went through to develop the skill herself. Her father (played by Prentiss) is an NBA player who hates rap. We don’t see him come around to enjoy her music or push her toward a goal. He’s just there.
Hank (Jamal Turner) and Julian (Tony Garcia) have a chemistry that carries the production. The ups and downs of their friendship and the way they push each other to be better artists (in a funny scene, we see they are terrible basketball players) are compelling. Both young actors capture the essence of Black and brown kids who are whisked out of cities for lives in the suburbs where they immediately become outsiders. They have a love for hip-hop — rapping, making beats, performing — but it’s also clear they long for a connection to their own cultures that don’t exist in the place their parents have moved them to.
Goodwin has a keen eye for stylistic writing. This was true in his play “The Boy Who Kissed the Sky,” about a fictionalized childhood of rock icon Jimi Hendrix, and it’s apparent here as well. The dialogue of the play feels like a mixtape. Characters’ words are repeated, or looped, and at times Selector stops the action and uses the characters’ words to make beats for the audience. This device could have been used a bit more sparingly, as it halts the action of the story, but stylistically, it’s clever and a unique way to lean into the theme of the play.
The heart of the story is the teens using hip-hop for self discovery and finding a way to be seen by peers, parents and each other. It works, but still feels a little rough around the edges. The good news is this story is steeped in hip-hop. So, with a little remixing, this can become a promising production.